Eye For An Eye
by Stream'sxCupxOfxTea
Summary: An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. But as Itachi Uchiha proved, even the blind could see with the Sharingan.
1. Chapter 1

The problem with killing Sasuke was he had been the last remaining Uchiha member, since Itachi's remains lay moldering in some half-forgotten place and the rest of the clan had been slaughtered years before. This, Sasuke being the last Uchiha, had been a concern, and had been the main argument for why he should he be kept alive. With Sasuke dead, the Uchiha clan would be erased from the world, and with the loss of the Uchiha clan would come the loss of the Sharingan. Not that losing the Uchiha clan was that terribly tragic, after all, hundreds of clans all over the world were destroyed everyday. That is not to say that people were not upset by the loss of the Uchiha, but the death of a clan was something that people could deal with. No, people were more worried about losing the Sharingan, for only Uchiha could learn the Sharingan. Of course, each clan that was lost also had some magical kekkei genkei, but losing the Sharingan seemed worst for some reason. More personal.

But there was little that could be done. Itachi was dead, Sasuke was dead, and if there were any surviving clan members out there, they were doing a good job of keeping themselves hidden. So people lamented the loss of the Sharingan, and they wept for Sasuke, though secretly, many were happy to see him dead. It was said that Itachi had been the crazy one; people who said that had clearly never met Sasuke. So they cried, and wept and shook their fists at the sky. But after a while, they started getting back to their normal lives. There were children to raise, and shinobi to train, not to mention the fact that Konoha had to be rebuilt. So while they mourned the last of the Uchiha, after a while, the people of the Hidden Leaf forgot and moved on with their lives.

At first, they completely forgot about Kakashi Hatake.

Of course, why should they remember Kakashi? He, after all, was not an Uchiha by birth. And his knowledge of the Sharingan was scant; Itachi and Sasuke had taken the best secrets of the Uchiha Clan kekkei genkei to the grave. But little was better than nothing, so it on Kakashi that all the tattered and broken plans made for Sharingan wielders lay. Or were lay, once people remembered that the Sharingan wasn't completely gone.

But this, in turn, brought up another issue. When an Sharingan wielder from the Uchiha clan died, that had been no big deal. After all, why should it be a big deal. True, death was sad, and whomever it was would undoubtedly be mourned, but there would always be other clan members to 'take up the mantle'. With the Uchiha clan gone, this was no longer true. Once Kakashi died, that would be it. There wouldn't be any loopholes, or short-cuts. When Kakashi died, that would be the end. And this time, the end would be forever.

The solution to this problem was so obvious that when they realized the solution, it was literally painful to realize it had taken them this long to figure the solution out. If not for Rin and Obito, Kakashi would have never become a Sharingan user. He would have gone through life as a perfect shinobi, strong, ruthless, and one who obeyed the rules without question. True, Kakashi would have been a good ninja without the Sharingan. But he would have been an ordinary one.

The answer to all their problems was just so simple, so complex, so...perfect.

There was always one student at the Academy who is better than the rest. Stronger, smarter, just better. Sometimes that person is a boy. Sometimes that person is a girl. It does not really matter. Either way, you still end up with a student who is just a little bit better than the rest.

So their plan, their brilliant plan, went like this; take that student, that one student who was better than the rest, and train them. Make them stronger and smarter than anyone else. Make them the best shinobi they can possibly be trained to be. Or if they are a girl, the best kunoichi they can possibly be trained to be. Pull them out of the Academy, and have them be trained one-on-one. And then, when the teachers deems they are ready, operate. Take out one of their bland, ordinary eyes, and replace that eye with a jewel, a treasure among treasures; the last surviving Sharingan eye. Obito's eye. Kakashi's eye. If their plan worked, said eye would be passed down generation through generation, going only from the best to the best.

Their plan was not perfect, nor was it moral. Their plan had flaws and faults. But all things considered, their plan was the best that could be come up with. Their world was a cruel world, and they had to make the best of a ruthless fate.

Once upon a time, a wise man once said "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind." And that was true. But their world was a cruel world, a ruthless world, and a blinded world. A world in which right and wrong are often the same thing. A world in which many choices end with death, either yours, or someone else's. A world in which children are trained to be killers, and no one complains.

An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind.

But as Itachi Uchiha proved, even the blind could see with the Sharingan. Your normal eye-sight might fail, but with the Sharingan, you would still see.

Their plan was a flawed plan. But it was all they could come up with. So then...

An eye for an eye.


	2. Chapter 2

Moegi's parents had always encouraged her to be the best shinobi (or in her case, kunoichi) that she could be. Because, after all, every parent want their child to be the best in the class; the smartest, the strongest, the cleverest. Because being the best means you are the shining student, the teachers pet. The best can do no wrong. They are almost blessed. Everyone wants to be them. Everyone loves them. Everyone hates them. It went without saying that the best shinobi had a good chance of being a ANBU captain, or even the Hokage.

But her parents had forgotten one important thing. All those things had been true; used to be true. Not any more. Nowadays, being the best meant being cursed. Being the best meant being pulled out of school to be trained one-on-one. Being the best meant losing all your friends. Nowadays, being the best meant being a freak.

Of course, that wasn't how they explained it. In fact, Moegi could remember everything that had happened, in perfect detail, from the shock she had felt to the lame-ass bogus 'story' they had told her about why she was so special.

Things started out with Iruka-sensei had asked her to stay after school one day. She had done so, thinking that he only wanted to congratulatee her on becoming the best student in the class, surpassing even Hanabi and Konohamaru. After that, she would be able to leave. No biggie. And being praised felt nice, especially after all those years of being in her peer's shadows. Instead, he had asked her to sit down and wait for several minutes, that the Hokage was on her way, but it would take her several more minutes to get here.

This should have tipped Moegi off that something was wrong.

When Tsunade-sama arrived, she wasted no time in getting to the point; the Hokage was, by nature, a blunt and impatient woman. The Uchiha clan was dead; Moegi knew that. The only remaining Uchiha eye belonged to Kakashi-sensei. She also knew that. But what she didn't know was that soon that eye would no longer be Kakashi-sensei's eye. It would be Moegi's.

Kakashi had been fatally wounded several months ago. And while he lived, the chances of him ever fighting again were very slim. But the eye he possessed was needed by fighters, not invalids. The Uchiha eye that Kakashi possessed was needed by the best student; one who would live up to the village's expectations, and make the Village of the Hidden Leaf proud.

And because fate was cruel, that someone was Moegi.

She and Kakashi-sensei would switch eyes, or something along those lines. She would get his Uchiha eye, and be trained in the 'hidden arts' of the Uchiha clan. Kakashi would get her normal, boring brown eye, and go about his damaged life.

At first, Moegi had been too shocked to say anything. Then, when she finally was able to speak, she began blurting out the names of others. Peers, students, friends who were better than her. Why couldn't Hanabi become the bearer of the Uchiha eye? Naruto? Sakura? Ino? Shikamaru? People Moegi knew and people she didn't. Some were just names she had heard, and known them to be strong. Kiba? Shino? Anyone?

The Hokage had dismissed all these names with a wave of her hand. The eye would not go to someone from the Hyuuga clan; they already possessed a magical eye. The last thing anyone wanted was for the Hyuuga clan to become even more powerful, and plan to overthrow the Hidden Leaf Village, just as the Uchiha had done long ago.

The others, the older one, former students who had known Sasuke...well, using the eye would be too emotional for them. Tsunade-sama made a face while saying this, and Moegi say the true reason the Hokage didn't want one of the older shinobi to use the eye; they all had other things to do.

Moegi was nothing, a nobody. She came from no important clan, and she had no kekkei genkei to call her own. She was the perfect tool. Moegi was just right. She was what they had been searching for all along.

Then, when things had finally sunk in, Moegi started to cry. The Hokage had snapped at her, saying this was an honor, and that she should be ashamed of herself for acting in such a childish manner. This only made Moegi cry harder. But the second time, Tsunade had nothing to say. So she left the devastated and angry teacher with his crying student, and tried to ignore the pangs that wracked her heart each time the girl sobbed.

Her parents were informed, of course. And for Moegi's sake, they pretended to be overjoyed that she had been chosen. In private though, she knew they were just as upset by this as she was. At night, Moegi was sometimes woken up by the sound of her mother crying.

Two years passed. Moegi turned fourteen. She was given two years to be trained; two years to become an outcast. Two years to lose all her friends, even Konohamaru and Udon; two years to get used to the idea of having someone else's eye implanted in her own face.

Moegi didn't think she'd ever be able to get used to that idea.

Two years passed all too quickly, and before she knew it, Moegi was wearing a white hospital shift, and sitting on a cold, metal bed, waiting for the Hokage and her aids to come in. Tsunade, Shizune, Sakura, Ino. Moegi trusted them with her life; they were all expert medic-nin. But that didn't make the idea of what they were going to do to her any easier.

After her operation, Moegi knew there would be even more training. Then...well, she didn't know what would come next. Missions, probably, killing and death. Normal for any kunoichi. But then again, with the eye (because Moegi would never be able to think of that eye as hers), Moegi knew she would never be normal. Not a normal villager, and not a normal kunoichi.

And as she listen to the Hokage and her apprenticeNaruto argue, Moegi realized something. That being the best wasn't a blessing. It was a curse. And it had always been a curse. Look what had happened to Itachi, Sasuke, Orochimaru, Jiraiya, even Tsunade. They had all been 'the best' in their times, and look where they were now.

But she would not be like that.

As Moegi lay back on the cold table and savored the last few minutes with her own plain, boring, dull, non-magical eyes, she made a promise to her soon-to-be ancestors. She made a promise to Itachi and Sasuke that she would not end up like them. She would be the best. And she would stay the best. She would change things. She would use their eye. She would become what the village wanted her to be, but she would also stay herself.

Because Moegi was the best. The best of the best. Just like those with the Sharingan before her.


End file.
